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EFFECTIVENESS OF ENGLISH SHORT STORIES ON
IMPROVING READING COMPREHENSION FOR ENGLISH NON- MAJORED FRESHMEN OF PHILOLOGY FACULTY AT BINH DUONG UNIVERSITY TRUONG DAI HOC MO TP.HCM THU VIEN A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts (TESOL)
Submitted by: Nguyễn Thị Thanh Hằng Supervisor: Nguyễn Thu Hương, Ed D
Trang 2ABSTRACT
Due to its benefits in language teaching, this research was carried out in reading classes to (1) investigate the extent to which the use of short stories can improve students' reading comprehension, and (2) to explore the students’ attitudes towards learning reading through short stories
The research participants were 110 freshmen at Binh Duong University (BDU) majoring in Philology This study was an experimental one, which was Pretest- Posttest control Group Design with one treatment Based on the pretest scores, the participant students were equally divided into two groups of control and experimental, with 55 for each The research instruments employed were an English comprehension test with 30 items and a questionnaire on students’ attitude The study made use of mean differences and a t-test to test Pretest and Posttest scores Meanwhile, the answers of the questionnaire respondents were calculated into percentages for the purpose of data comparison
The findings of the study showed that the use of short stories helped promote the experimental group students’ reading comprehension Actually, their Posttest scores were statistically higher than those of the control group Next, the students of the experimental group expressed their positive attitudes towards learning English reading through the use of short stories In their responses, most advocated the possibility of improving learners’ reading comprehension of short stories
Trang 3TABLE OF CONTENTS CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY RETENTION: AND USE OF THE THESIS ssccssssssssssiisseassaneapassessascissavsecayesasvsseatennts I
GHAPTER, ONE: INTRODUCTION 'ssesssscssesssssvssscavesssnxcuscsncansessvessssucayvssceaseaxpeuensnes 1
1,1 Rationales of the studịy - ¿56c +55 cưng are rret 1
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1.4 Significance of the study
15 Backsroiiiid fG tịe SUIđŸngtnggHqqtitit\giSqGSGGGIAGRBRSIGHNGIRtRuuigiss 5 1.5.1 Description of the English syllabus for English non-majored students
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1/5:2/Coufse ĐOÔKistsoiensirstotoditogttipttdar0i5.6616509833084061015 G1404438SQ41804GNEE81008088 5 1.5.3 Characteristics of English non- majored students - 6
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1.6.1 The sample of the study
Trang 41.7 Overview of thesis chapt€rs . -cccccee ltStBBRIQRODNGIHGGEOIUNSE qf CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
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2.1.4 Factors affecting Reading Comprehension . « -c«cccreeccrscre 14 2.2 Teaching literature in the language classroom
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Trang 53:5.1 The litefary teXts (ADDENGDX E) psoniaadenasaidogsgtaibgitidtisã0GA8G 158144884 32
3.5.2 Lesson plans (Appendix B)
3.5.3 English Reading Comprehension Test (Appendix A) and Scoring
CHÍLCTÍR coasenginaneiatigigiindiitiiiinatiiaiav0ã51-10111100143050484303038165404613350160162400858808088 36 3.5.4 Attitude questionnaire (Appendix C) . -s-c+ccsserrrerrrrrrrerrerrree 39 3.6 Data analysis s.scicscssvsicssvveessavssvacsessvavvsnstvevsasstvccsvicnstaavesusssvnccstacsicaasonessibensissiesiiss 39 3.6.1 Evaluating the reliability of the test: c:.ssscccsscsssscnsssescesoenssstvacaacoosansnonsonsseceses 40 3.6.2 Comparison of the difference of two groups after the Pre-test and the
Post-test
316.3 Questiontiaine data analysis s.iciscissscsescossseosenvenereresiessumesnvesnasnceneeenssd 42
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS AND DISCUSSION 4
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4.1.2 Posttest
4.1.3 Classification of the POsft€Sf SCOT€S nh ceg 48
4.2 Research question 2: To what extent do two groups significantly differ from each other in terms oftheir gains in literal comprehension? 142650
4.2.1 Pre-test lãšSE150816010313015123813844514156134618438809146501683846103181651614/303888481311g0338 50
4.2.2 PPOSIẨ€SE HH HH 1 rrree 52 42.3: Classification ofthe Posttest SCOLes! csssssssesssssvssssscosnsrssscesvssasswvasserveisivenaussses 53
Trang 64.3 Research question 3: To what extent do two groups significantly differ from each other in terms of their gains in applied comprehension? 55
lÀ:3.| PTEE(ÉSE kgnongvn6u01 20014 tá ng ng R18 GIYNI1515014131881453118014181465418g53806046168530118001Ả 55 4.3.2 Posttest
4.3.3 Classification of the Posttest SCOTS scissssicsssscesssssisenssnsssssssssnssessoseossasosessvaies 58 4.4 Research question 4: What are the students' views on the use of short stories? .60 BAL QUESHON Lisssscsssnessneonsseresvescesnevenesoasssvenssnensessneasavnaneasstucvenanesuesnbassseaskesvescasrees 60 4:49 QUESTION 2 ces 061004011 EĐANHEDOEOAQIRIEREHISGIAIGIAOHDNGSRISBSIAMXNguasd 61 4.4.3 Question 3 4:4:4-QUGSHGP topinabgbibRqOXRHGIRKRIIISERGRIRMXGRRGSGRNNINsSESQSMpSSl 62 AAS QuesfÏOTI Š cà HH HH HH HH HH HT TH HH 63 Á:4:Ó QUESLOH Ổ:osgonntcGi1802161880401548133N53646itn4S5GS334t2164 055.386.3846iã.036q L2 ssS8 63 4.4.7 Quesfion 7 - 12H 4 HH" TH H1 HH TT Hán 64 4.4.8 Question S8611610206608834800 65 4.4.9 Question 9 4.4,10 QuesHGN ÏÚ so cssssu2nnnnsdebnh dan giác giá lgx1061110116144665045316181661461550g8gu g0 Ú 66 4.4.11 Question ÍÌ << vn HH HT HH ngơ 67 4.4.12 QuestiOn Í2 eccoscesoonnesisiiiiniioiEDeEtEk6L01014583600018306046651501336051244480085000 8045 D 67
4413 QUESHON Í23iccsscca2bdBy8i0i61808i60S08Gq08ã608W5u 4403038 03ni88.p2.xá 68 4.5 Discussion of the Findings
Trang 75.1 Summary of the study oo ceecsesesseseeseeseseeeeseseseseeseeeesessssssesesseeeeessesseeessesesseesenes 75 5.2 COrIC[USÏOTI 5-5 S1 vn TT TT Họ Thọ gọn HH tre 77 5.3 Implication for Teaching and Learning .ccscssssssssssesssessssessssscssveessessesssvesseseeees 79 5.4 Recommendation for Further Research - ¿6-5 s*sxsxvrecsrxsrxersre 82
APPENDIX C: QUESTIONNAIRE .- 5c cSnresrererrrrrrrrrrrererrrree 109 APPENDIX D: THE SCORES OF THE PRE-TEST AND POST-TEST OF W);I299)60.49)0ẸC/:4000 0 aaaaa1A4 113
APPENDIX E: THE SCORES OF THE PRE-TEST AND POST-TEST OF
THE EXPERIMENTAL GROUP T16
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Trang 8LIST OF TABLES
Table3.1s Research Design scsvscssvsincssissisnsiscwnsvssuasvsassescscnsrscctscsswesdaninnsiscscastsissenscaesastess 31
Table 4.1: The experimental group's and the control group's pretest scores44
Table 4.2: Comparison of the two groups' Pre-TeSt SCOTES .s.ss.ssessessssessessssesseesesssessessecneers 45 Table 4.3: The experimental group's and the control group's Postfes† $c0res 46 Table 4.4: Mean difference of Pretest and POSttest .s.sscssscsssssseressessssessesseeseecssessscesnersesees 46 Table 4.5: Comparison of the two groups’ posttest SCOPES .ssesssssessesvesssecseesnssssessneessateess 48
Table 4.6: Paired Difference (Post-test SCOPES) .csscsssssessesesseesssssssesessssseseesseseesnssseesesneesse 48
Table 4.7: Classification of the two groups' POSE-lOSt s.ssesssssesssessessesessessesiesessesseeneesenreene 49
Table 4.8: The experimental group's and the control group's Pre-test scores (in literal comprehension)
Table 4.9: Comparison of the two groups' Pre-Test scores (in literal comprehension) 51
Table 4.10: The experimental group's and the control group's post-test scores (in literal COMPTENENSION) wccvsssvssersssssssesnenssswarsevesswussuceseasecnnesssnsstestentastersvstennsbescuoberiseencavassnenasesneueions 52 Table 4.11: Comparison of the two groups' Post-test scores (in literal comprehension) .53
Table 4.12: Pajred Difference (Post-test scores in literal comprehension) 53
Table 4.13: Classification of the two group’ Post-test (in literal comprehension) 54
Trang 9Table 4.18: Paired Difference (Post-test scores in applied comprehension) - 58
Table 4.19: Classification of the two groups’ Post-test (in applied comprehension) 59 Table 4.20: The characteristics of experimenial gr0tip SỈH(Ä@PIS «sec scccecreecee 61 Table 4.21: Different reasons of their learning English -c- «coi 61 Table 4.22: S?wđerrs' opinion on their pr@ferenece for learning Engilish 62 Table 4.23: Students’ opinion on their preference for 4 English skills - 62 Table 4.24: Students’ opinions on their preference for reading short stories in English 63
Table 4.25: Students’ previous background knowledge s sessessesseresesssseesessesnesseneeseeseeness 64 Table 4.26: Students’ opinions on reading short stories in English being good for their
learning English
Table 4.27: Students’ opinion on their feeling before learning reading through short stories
enssnensecenersuenasnensenterstenueenvaserteoseeesneannensnensgessonstaesssnseusnoeavatavnegnnsvensnnacetentsenenvorecnnnenresonsensnoseosare! 65
Table 4.28: Students’ feelings after learning reading through short sfories - 65 Table 4.29: Students’ opinions on their preference for reading short stories in class 66
Table 4.30: Students’ opinions on their preference for writing a report/a reflection after
vedding Gn English SHOP SÍ0ĂioocaoasaseanianiiiisgiidididiilDiliSA1444108888044i4g60105500140083188051838560 1302) 67 Table 4.31: The benefits of using shOrl SỈOFÏêS HH gu ren 68
Table 4.32: Srwdenfs' problems in learning reading through short slOries 68
Trang 10LIST OE ABBREVIATIONS BDU: Binh Duong University
EFL: English as a Foreign Language ESL: English as a Second Language
ESP: English for Specific Purposes
EGP: English for General Purpose ELT: English Language Teaching GE: General English
Trang 11Chapter One: INTRODUCTION
Teaching reading to students plays an important role in the process of teaching and learning foreign languages in general and English in particular In the context of teaching and learning English as a foreign language, reading comprehension is taking an ever-increasingly important role Through reading students are exposed to different kinds of texts, acquainted with linguistic and cultural diversity and richness Reading enables students not only to develop vocabulary but also to enhance their level of knowledge Learners can also learn grammatical structures and foster linguistic skills by reading as well Reading, in fact, helps improve not only learners’ skills but also viewpoints about life and world and their personality via a lesson drawn from each reading text or story
There has been a variety of books and studies on the importance and necessity of reading in learning a foreign language According to Blake (2003, p 5), “Reading is so important because we need it to carry out some important purposes such as to learn, to find out and to appreciate the art of writing ” Conley (1992) also confirms that our world is now a reading world, whether in school, in business, or even in recreational pursuits and daily life, satisfactory adjustment to living in the complex modern world requires effective reading skills
Since we learned to read, we have been keen on children’s books When we grow
up, we have a tendency to read newspapers and magazines, in addition to other reference books related to our life and our work As for students at the tertiary education, what to read is much dependent on their various majors, which serves their studies to the full
1.1 Rationales of the study
Trang 12From my personal experience as an EFL teacher for the Philological Faculty at Binh Duong University (BDU), I have found that teaching reading to English non- majored students is quite challenging If the ultimate aim of teaching reading is to help them comprehend what they have read, then the results seem to "betray" me Most of my students do not seem to be good readers because of the following reasons:
Firstly, they are not interested in reading nor actively involved in reading It can be
observed through their passive learning style Most of them come to class just for
being checked their attendance During the lesson hours, they often talk to one another about their own things but not about the lesson They do not pay attention to the teacher's explanation and nor participate in class activities Collins (1997) identifies that students have poor motivation in reading when they are unable to use the language in meaningful situations They are unwilling or uncooperative learners The second related reason is that the reading material being used may hardly have any relation to their major: philology although it is of real-life contexts
Thirdly, they experience difficulty in understanding the text because of limited vocabulary and poor grammar When they encounter difficult words or sentence structures in a passage, they do not understand the meaning of the whole passage due to lack of reading techniques In fact, when they read, they are not usually aware of using the rules or techniques in reading such as skimming, scanning, predicting and guessing the meanings of the unknown words in the context
Another reason is teaching methodology Most classes are teacher-centered Students’ principal learning in class is only to listen and take notes They are too much dependent on their teachers As a result, they usually obtain bad marks in their exams if the reading test does not concentrate on what they have learned in
class Thus, both teachers and students are not motivated, leaving learners with their
poor comprehension and distraction from reading
Trang 13According to Cook (1989), poor readers have some bad behaviors such as: starting reading without preparation, reading without considering how to approach the material, being easily distracted, not recognizing important vocabulary, stopping reading and thinking abruptly, and so on The same is true with my students of Philological Faculty They are classified as “poor and immature readers”, which can be clearly illustrated through their results of a pre-test given at the beginning of the course The reading pre-test given is to measure their literal comprehension and also applied comprehension of the text
From the reality above, it really gives me an impulse to do an empirical research which focuses on how to improve their reading comprehension in terms of both literal and applied comprehension Why to choose short stories as supplementary reading for Philology Students is another concern in this research In the first instance, a short story is not time-consuming for students The second reason for choosing short stories in literature is that they help get students involved in their studies: the texts they read are certainly carefully selected to suit their major The criteria of selection of suitable short stories to teach are dependent on three factors: (1) learners’ language level, (2) time allotment and (3) learners’ needs and interests It is hoped that their foundation of learning reading will firmly be built for their studies of English for Specific Purposes (ESP) Therefore, six short stories are provided as supplementary reading in level 2 syllabus of English for General Purposes (EGP) for Philology students at BDU
In descriptions of reading comprehension, Barrette (1972) divided it into four categories: literal recognition or recall, inferences, evaluation, and appreciation Herber (1978), however, suggested three levels of reading comprehension: literal comprehension, interpretive comprehension and applied comprehension It is true that literal comprehension is a must in the process of reading, which to Hemmingway's view, is the three tenths of emerging part of the iceberg Still, what is more significant in developing learners’ reading is their applied comprehension or
a
Trang 14personal response named by Day and Park (2005) In the light of this theory, literal comprehension becomes a means to an end which makes learners pursue the development of the story, get close to characters and share their emotional responses and then develop their critical thinking
1.2 Purpose of the study
As mentioned above, the study aims at investigating the extent to which short stories can help Philology students at BDU to read more effectively 1.3 Research questions To elaborate the research aim above, the following research questions have been established: 1 To what extent do short stories help students improve reading comprehension? Two sub-questions (2, 3)
2 To what extent do two groups significantly differ from each other in terms of their gains in literal comprehension?
3 To what extent do two groups significantly differ from each other in terms of their gains in applied comprehension?
4 What are the students’ views on the use of short stories? 1.4 Significance of the study
Trang 15reading lessons intellectually and emotionally Second, short stories help arouse learners’ inspiration for learning reading In this regard, reading lessons will be more interesting and meaningful to learners Lastly, through the result of the study the researcher can possess important evidence to suggest and then convince other reading instructors of using short stories as one of the valuable sources of supplementary reading material for English non-majored students at BDU
1.5 Background to the study
1.5.1 Description of the English syllabus for English non-majored students of Philological Faculty (PL)
The four skills (listening, speaking, reading, and writing) are parts of the whole GE syllabus of BDU to help students achieve English at Pre-intermediate level with equal consideration Requirements for course level 2 also focus on the four skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing In other words, the four skills are considered equally important and should be treated equally among the learners It means reading is an essential and obligatory skill for the English non-majored students studying course level 2 at BDU and it should not be neglected
The English non-majored first-year students, who are also the participants of this study, use Lifelines (by Hutchinson 1999, Oxford University Press) as their course book Throughout Course Level 2, totally, they will learn six units (from unit 9 to unit 14) of Lifelines Elementary and the first two units of Lifelines Pre- intermediate Such course consists of 75 periods (45 minutes per period) There will be one meeting per week and each lasts for 5 periods The total time length of course level 2 is accordingly 15 weeks
1.5.2 Course book
Generally, teaching four skills in this book are designed in the light of integration purpose Reading texts only focus simple non-fiction topics, such as travel, fashion,
Trang 16daily activities, etc Tasks for reading parts in each unit of the textbook are not designed in rich diversity Usually, students are asked to read the passage and then answer comprehension questions, which are rather monotonous and boring
In this regard, the key to successful language learning is in each learner’s self- esteem or their own inspiration Variety in teaching content is one of the important factors which can increase their interest and motivation Therefore, a wider range of texts should be provided for reading
1.5.3 Characteristics of English non- majored students
It is necessary to take a brief look at the English non-majored students at BDU Most are those who have not succeeded in passing the exam to the National Universities and then come to BDU as their second choice They are of different levels because they come from various parts of the country, especially remote provinces in which English teaching and learning are still in low conditions in terms of teaching quality and learning facilities
1.6 Scope of the study
1.6.1 The sample of the study
The participants involved in this work were 110 freshmen of the Philology Faculty at BDU They were equally divided into 2 separate groups of experimental and control, with 55 students for each Personal information about them will be presented in detail in item 4.1.1 on page 60 (Chapter 4)
1.6.2 The variables in the study
1 The independent variable is teaching English reading using short stories 2 The dependent variable is the subjects’ English reading comprehension
Trang 171.7 Overview of thesis chapters
The thesis consists of five chapters Chapter One mentions the rationales, the purpose, the research questions, the significance, background to the study as well as the scope of the study Chapter Two presents a review of the literature with the previous studies related to the thesis Chapter Three describes the methodology utilized in the thesis, which includes a presentation of research participants, approach and instruments, and method of data analysis Chapter Four presents the results of the study Chapter Five provides the thesis conclusion
Trang 18Chapter Two: LITERATURE REVIEW
This study centers round the use of short stories to increase the reading comprehension ability of English non-majored students of the Philology Faculty at BDU To the researcher’s hope, applying short stories in reading teaching will provide the Philological students with knowledge, skills, good attitudes and interests in their language study This chapter will discuss some issues relating to (1) the theory of reading in the second language (2) teaching literature in the language classroom, and (3) the related researches and studies
2.1 Theory of Reading 2.1.1 Definition of reading
No one denies the importance of reading as it is concerned very much in the process of the second language teaching and learning In fact, it is an effective tool to enhance the level of knowledge as well as a scaffolding to develop other linguistics skills such as: listening, speaking and writing Moreover, there are various definitions of reading from many scholars, which suggest that reading be an essential and necessary skill to develop and improve
According to Harmer (1998), reading texts give learners chances to study language (vocabulary, grammar and punctuation) and the way to construct sentences, paragraphs and texts He also mentions that good reading texts can provide good models for writing and provide opportunities to introduce new and interesting topics, to stimulate discussion, and to motivate imaginative responses and be the springboard for well-rounded, fascinating lessons Therefore, it is true that one will be good at writing skill when he practices a lot of reading
“Reading,” as Aebersold and Field stated (1997, p 15), "is what happens when people look at a text and assign meaning to the written symbols in that text.” Or
Trang 19“Reading is a receptive language process It is a psycholinguistic process in that it starts with a linguistic surface representation encoded by a writer and end with meaning which the reader constructs.”(Carrel, Devine, & Eskey, 1998)
Besides, Grabe (2009), cited in Urquhart & Weir, (1998, p 22): “Reading is a process of receiving and interpreting information encoded in language form via the medium of print”
With the above definitions mentioned, it is supposed that reading is the interaction
between the text and the reader When reading, learners search for and construct meaning based on what brings to the text and what the text brings to them The skill of reading comprehension depends on readers’ previous knowledge or experience in language learning, including the knowledge of syntax, semantics, and lexical relationship which help them guess the meaning in the reading As a result, this helps learners develop interpretative abilities and improve vocabulary and linguistics knowledge
It can be concluded that reading is the process of decoding the message of the writer to understand the meaning of the text However, the level of the depth of text processing depends on not only learners’ language competence but also their attitudes, beliefs, background knowledge and social and cultural knowledge, etc Reading purposes vary from one reader to another and it is certain that readers’ purposes determine their reading techniques, which will be mentioned and presented in the next part of the research
2.1.2 Reading Purposes
According to Nuttall (1996), readers’ purposes have a strong influence on the way they tackle a text, the comprehension skill they use and the recall they have of that text Brown (1994) also suggests that efficient reading consists of clear identifying the purpose in reading something By doing so, readers know what they are looking for and can get rid of potential distracting information The purpose a reader has in
Trang 20reading a text will affect the result of his understanding, the product of comprehension Once readers have determined a purpose for reading, they then have a reason for thinking as well as for completing the reading assignment Readers, therefore, should be encouraged to develop their own purposes in reading so that meaningful lessons can take place
From such point of view, it is obvious that to teach reading effectively, teachers need to know learners’ purposes well because defining what learners want from reading helps teachers much with selecting materials as well as determining the appropriate approach to learners’ reading comprehension
2.1.3 Reading comprehension
As mentioned above, reading is known as the process of perceiving and decoding letters in order to read words Readers need to understand all the words to understand the meaning of the text So, the primary objective of reading is comprehension It is one of the most important factors in reading If readers can read words but do not understand what they are reading, they are not really “reading” Efficient reading requires competency in decoding and comprehension Many scholars have given descriptions about reading comprehension as follows
“Reading for through comprehension is reading in order to master the total message of the writer, both main points and supporting details It is that stage of understanding at which the reader is able to paraphrase the author’s ideas but has not yet made a critical evaluation of those ideas This type of reading is primary
concern of most reading classes.” (Long 1987, p 239)
"Comprehension, by definition, is process of relating new or incoming information
to information already stored in memory Readers make connections between the new information on the printed page and their existing knowledge." (Lee &
Trang 21Blake (2003, p 65) also stated, “Comprehension means understanding, i.e getting
the message writers send us When we understand, we know what ideas writers
have put in their message.”
Reading comprehension is also defined further when Anderson and Pearson (1984) say, when the reader makes a critical evaluation of the ideas conveyed in the text, he/she is making a connection between the new information on the printed page and his/her existing knowledge Reading comprehension is thus an interactive process between the reader and the text, in that the reader is required to fit the clues provided in the text to his or her own background knowledge
Moreover, the process of comprehension is the combination of top-down and bottom-up process When the reader tries to comprehend there is a “bouncing back- and-forth” between the reader and the text, between a readers’ top-down knowledge of the topic and the text, comprehension is then reached (Carrell, 1988)
It is clear from the above description that reading depends more on knowledge and comprehension, including the process of interpretation Therefore, to reconstruct the
writer’s message, the use of a number of reading comprehension models seems to
be a must for any reader The concepts of top-down and bottom-up processing as strategic models of reading comprehension have always been on the focus of researchers for many years The top-down model includes skimming, scanning, activating background knowledge, predicting, thinking of the author’s main idea, finding clues, contextual guessing, and associating images which have specified this model processing as “conceptual driven” Bottom-up processing, on the other hand, mainly stresses on literal comprehension, surface meaning, translation into the first language (L1) and use of dictionary which have specified this model as “data driven”.(Carrel et al 1988; Nuttall, 1996)
Reading and comprehension is not limited to the text So, in order to recreate the writer’s message, the reader should apply comprehension strategies Since the
as
Trang 22primary objective of reading is comprehension, different types of comprehension strategies have been proposed by many researchers (Bloom et al, 1956; Barrett,
1968, 1972, 1976; Herber, 1978; Mohamad, 1999; Day and Park, 2005)
One of the earliest descriptions of comprehension was provided by Bloom et al _ (1956), who offered six categories of comprehension: knowledge, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation Then, Barrett also divided the levels of comprehension into four main categories: literal recognition or recall, inferences, evaluation, and appreciation./In 1978, Herber tried to relate Bloom and Barrett's categories to three levels of reading comprehension: literal comprehension, interpretative comprehension, and applied comprehension In Herber's description of reading comprehension, literal comprehension requires the reader to recall or recognize information explicitly presented in the reading At interpretive level, the reader is asked for paraphrase, explanation, inference, conclusion, or summary As for applied level, the reader needs to use background knowledge to evaluate, elaborate, predict, or solve problems based on implicit information in the text Similarly, Mohamad (1999) suggested three comprehension strategies He, then, divided the strands of comprehension into “literal”, “interpretive” and “critical” comprehension He stated that the first level involves surface meanings Thus, the teacher can ask students to find information and ideas that are explicitly stated in the text (bottom-up processing) With regard to the second: level, students go beyond what is said and read for deeper meanings Students need to be able to see relationships among ideas, for example, how ideas go together and also see the implied meanings of these ideas Interpretive or referential comprehension includes thinking process such as drawing conclusion, making generalization and predicting outcomes The third level focuses on evaluating ideas and information which is mainly used in advanced levels Hence, to encourage learners not to focus on applying a specific reading comprehension model, the teacher should make
Trang 23significant efforts to provide the students with different reading assessment criteria to test their reading abilities
More recently, Day and Park (2005) presented the taxonomy of reading comprehension basing on the work of Pearson and Johnson (1972) and Nuttall
(1996) They suggested that there are six levels of comprehension: literal,
reorganization, inference, prediction, evaluation and personal response According to Day and Park, /iteral comprehension refers understanding and obtaining explicit information presented in the text, such as facts, vocabulary, dates, and time The next type of comprehension is reorganization, which is based on literal comprehension; students must use their understanding from different parts of the text and combine it for additional understanding An inference requires students to identify meaning in the text but not explicitly stated This involves combining their literal comprehension of the text with personal experience and intuition The fourth comprehension type mentioned by Day and Park is prediction, which involves being able to determine what may happen next in the flow of the text To do this, readers are supposed to use both their understanding of the text and their personal knowledge of the topic Another type is evaluation which the reader is asked to
make a judgment about the entirety or some aspect of the text Finally, personal
response is a level of comprehension which involves expressing readers’ personal
opinion about the text and subject
In spite of various ways of naming the comprehension levels divided by Bloom,
Barrett, Herber, Mohamad, and Day &Park, they still have some common things:
the levels are ranged from literal to application In reading process, understanding literal meaning is considered an essential condition which helps the reader grasp the implication of the writer If we suppose that reading is an interactive process in which reader constructs meaning with the text, then we need to help our students learn to do this This is to say that readers are allowed to use their own knowledge while reading They must relate to the content of the text to reflect a literal
Trang 24understanding of the material and respond with the feeling for the text and the subject at the same time That is the reason why, in my research, I boldly choose the two levels of comprehension, named "literal" and "applied" by Herber These two levels are supposed to be parallel to those of "knowledge" and "application" in Bloom's taxonomy
In general, the importance of reading comprehension should be seriously taken into account so that reading purposes can be reached as expected It is crucial for learners to be familiar with different reading comprehension models to optimally solve reading comprehension questions as well as to recreate the writer’s message Nevertheless, we can not help mentioning some certain crucial factors that determine readers’ comprehension of a literal work or even a simple reading text It is true that reading purposes, reading comprehension and factors affecting reading comprehension make a closed and logical process of one’s developing reading skill 2.1.4 Factors affecting Reading Comprehension
Reading is the most important activity in any language class, not only as a source of information and an enjoyable activity, but also as a means of consolidating and increasing one’s knowledge of a language (River, 1981) Through reading, learners can develop a sufficient language base that enables them to improve other skills Actually, comprehension is influenced by several factors that may affect reading in a second or foreign language which Aebersold and Field (1997, pp 23-24) have compiled These factors are listed below in order of importance
The first factor is the cognitive development and learning style orientation at the
Trang 25The second mention is language proficiency in the first language which enables readers with higher levels of proficiency in the second/foreign language to transfer reading skills from their first language to their second/ foreign language proficiency
Thirdly, with metacognitive knowledge of the first language structure, grammar, and syntax, learners who are more able to describe and discuss rules of their own language appear to be more proficient at improving their second or foreign language reading processes
Degree of difference between the first language and a second or foreign language is another factor that affects one’s reading comprehension In fact, the greater the differences between the first language and the second or foreign language, in terms of syntax like writing systems, rhetorical structures, and appropriate strategies, the more difficult it is for one to acquire a high level of reading proficiency in the second or foreign language
Last but not least, cultural orientations need mentioning here They are comprised of attitudes towards reading text and purposes for reading; types of reading skills and strategies used in the first language; types of reading skills and strategies used appropriately in the second/ foreign language; beliefs about the reading process (use of inference, memorization, nature of comprehension); knowledge of text types in the first language (formal schemata) and background knowledge (content schemata), which all influence one’s success in reading in the second or foreign language
Also, Chapman (1979, pp 36-37) has another suggestion of the three important factors influencing comprehensive reading, which are (1) text linguistics knowledge, (2) one’s general experience, and (3) specific content knowledge For text linguistics knowledge, the reader should know the technical words, the structure of sentences, writing strategies and writers’ writing style Furthermore,
Trang 26reading bases on each reader’s general experience because this affects him or her to understand the text Along with the second factor by Chapman, Conley (1995, p 50) affirmed the fact that readers have experiences of involving knowledge about what is read and familiar with the language used is important With specific content knowledge, Conley (1995) also asserted that readers must have text comprehension which includes understanding vocabulary or group of words, distinguishing facts and opinions and interpreting the context and involving learners’ understanding by using their knowledge to create or perceive the meaning of the text
It is certain that comprehension in reading and the ability to utilize one’s own knowledge can also enhance his or her reading skill Woolfolk (1990, pp 245-255) said:
“The important components of comprehensive reading is awareness competence of the readers to use strategies for understanding the context such as reading for
summarizing, finding the main ideas of the text, using previous knowledge to read
the text, and using contents explain the text’s meaning."
Still, Rost (1993) considered only two important factors affecting comprehensive reading They are (1) vocabulary or literal reading, and (2) general reading comprehension or inferential reading
However, Bachman (1995) claimed that the factors of reading comprehension also based on intelligence, with particular concern on level of ability, attitudes toward reading and learning from text, and individual differences in reading achievement In addition, Phillips (1984) combined what Chapman said and what Bachman claimed that the important components of comprehensive reading also concern knowledge and language competence, reader’s intelligence or competence in using reasoning and thinking in the text,’ the previous experience and the special knowledge of readers
Trang 27what to read motivated the readers to put their efforts in reading and the preparation for reading
Somewhat similarly, in Reading Instruction Diagnostic Teaching in the Classroom, Harry & Smith (1986) suggested that some factors concerning reading
comprehension are reader's minds: interest, motivation, opinion, belief, and
purpose Besides, previous knowledge, language competence and thinking ability play an essential role in helping readers understand the text It has the implication that the important factors influencing reading comprehension consist of not only language competence in vocabulary and structures of the text, the inference ability based on their background knowledge and their ability to use other reading
strategies but also reading purposes, motivation, interest, attitude, belief, and
feeling
The identification of the factors affecting reading comprehension will, certainly, help us a lot in the effective teaching of English reading
Based on the theory of reading written by many linguists, this research is making an attempt in providing some certain short stories in the student’s syllabus of BDU Philology Faculty For this reason, the benefits of learning literature in language classroom will be given so that a smart choice of short stories can be made for the students to learn to get the aim of the study
2.2 Teaching literature in the language classroom 2.2.1 The benefits of learning literature
Trang 28texts as extensive and intensive reading, found in their “possibility of internalizing” the language and “reinforcing points previously learned” They are also considered as a genuine language context and a focal point for the students in their own efforts to communicate Finally, literature study can provide not only motivation but also a range of texts and an introduction to the many different varieties of English as well Similarly, Lazar (1993, p 14) advocates the use of literature in the language classroom He gives remarkable reasons for introducing such teaching material It has general educational values Specifically, it is very motivating as it provides learners with authentic material Thus, students enjoy it when being exposed to it Besides, it can help students to understand the target language culture Furthermore, it can be also considered as a stimulus to the acquisition of language It helps develop students’ interpretive abilities Next, it helps expand students’ language awareness and encourages them to talk about their opinions and feelings
Turker (1991, p 304) also emphasizes the advantages of using literary texts in language teaching as follows First, literary texts will help improve learners’ four skills of reading, listening, speaking and writing Second, by using and analyzing literary texts, learners may understand and get information related to experiences and events in real life Third, literary texts will help the readers realize the individual and societal developments Thus, they make them improve themselves culturally and educationally in accordance with their emotional features They also remove mother tongue interferences Lastly, students’ analyzing and criticizing skills can be facilitated
Undoubtedly, an appropriate literary text with an interesting theme may stimulate learners' interest particularly a topic which is relevant to learners’ daily lives or
concerns Literature opens a new world to the students It helps them develop the
Trang 29draw on their own experiences By doing so, learners become more personally invested in the process of language learning According to Langer (1997, p 607) literature can open "horizons of possibility, allowing students to question, interpret, connect, and explore" Collie and Slater (1987) also focus on the positive contributions of a literary text as it exposes to different registers, types of language use An interesting and entertaining short story or a poem that conveys our feeling or emotion can touch the learners' heart instantly
In short, literature can be used in teaching language It can help students read, infer, and think creatively Students can become more aware of the target language and better readers (Lau, 2002)
2.2.2 General concepts of a short story
Though there have been a variety of definitions of a short story, they have many elements in common
Determining what exactly separates a short story from longer fictional formats is problematic A classic definition of a short story is that one should be able to read it in one setting Other definitions place the maximum word length at 7,500 words In contemporary usage, the term “short story” often refers to a work of fiction no longer than 20,000 words and no shorter than 1,000 words (http:// w.w.w novel vs short story)
Stories tend to contain certain core elements of dramatic structure: exposition, complication, rising action (crisis), climax, resolution, and moral Because of their short length, short stories may or may not follow this pattern Some do not follow patterns at all As with longer stories, plots of short stories also have a climax, crisis, or a turning point However, the endings of many short stories are abrupt and open and may or may not have a moral or practical lesson Of course, as with any
art form, the exact characteristics of a short story will vary by the author
Trang 30According to Hornby (1987, p 1187), a short story is a story, usually about imaginary characters and events that is short enough to be read from beginning to
end without stopping
Another definition cited by Flanagan is that a short story is a brief works of fiction It usually contains one major conflict and often only one major character Its brevity usually suggests concise narration and limited setting
Related to the special characteristics of a short story, Burroway as quoted by Koesnosoebroto (1998, p 12) stated,
“A short story is short and wastes no words The short story must be arranged in
such a way so that there will not be a waste of words or sentences Besides, the sentences used in a short story must be well chosen so that each sentence has connectivity with the topic or the theme of the story.”
With the definitions above, it can be concluded that a short story is a short work of fiction that tends to be less complex than a novel Usually, a short story focuses on only one incident, has a single plot, a single setting, and a limited number of characters, and covers a short period of time Thus, with simple story content it does not take learners long to read it This is also the key reason why short stories are carefully selected and inserted in the English non-majored syllabus
2.2.3 Using short stories in teaching
Trang 31interests and tastes Finally, they can be used with all levels (beginning to advanced), all ages (young learners to adults) and all classes (summer course to evening classes)
Furthermore, stories are very motivating, challenging and great for learners They can help develop “positive attitudes” towards the foreign language, “culture” and “language learning” (Ellis & Brewster, 2002, p 1)
Ellis and Brewster (2002, p 2) also suggested,
“Using stories allows the teacher to introduce or revise new vocabulary and sentence
structures by exposing the learners to language in varied, memorable and familiar
contexts, which will enrich their thinking and gradually enter their own speech.”
In fact, stories can be used to improve students’ vocabulary and reading Lao and Krashen (2000) present the results of a comparison between a group of students to read literary texts and another to read non-literary texts at a university in Hong Kong Those of the first certainly showed their improvement in vocabulary and reading In addition, Povey (1967) claimed that as they contain real examples of grammatical structures and vocabulary items, the literary texts raise learners' awareness of the range of the target language and advance their competence in all language skills It is a fact that when reading a lot, students can write well because they can learn not only vocabulary, structures but ideas and even morals implied by the author in the story
Stories address universal themes which go beyond the useful level of basic
dialogues and daily activities They allow learners "to play with ideas and feelings
and to think about issues which are important and relevant to them"; they also provide "ideal opportunities for presenting cultural information and encouraging cross-cultural comparison" (Ellis and Brewster, 2002, p 2)
Trang 32Moreover, short stories help students expand their linguistic skill Savvidou (2004) said that the use of literature in the English classroom can provide a powerful pedagogic tool in the learners’ linguistic development
Howie (1993) also agrees with the use of short stories as means to teach learners critical thinking (p 24) He pointed out that instructors have the responsibility to help students to develop cognitive skills because everyone needs to “make
judgments, be decisive, come to conclusions, synthesize information, organize,
evaluate, predict, and apply knowledge.” (p 24) Therefore, it can be concluded that by reading and writing, students develop their critical thinking skills
Oster (1989) stated that analyzing short stories from different perspectives in multi- cultural ESL/EFL classrooms, students can enrich their viewpoints of world and of life accordingly She maintained that students should be encouraged to make question and discuss the short stories that are told from a single point of view Following that, they can tell the story from a different character's view or rewrite it from their own views This activity not only integrates reading with the productive skills but also enables students to realize how their own experiences, culture and values affect their views
`
Trang 33perfect vehicle to help students understand the positions of themselves as well as the others by transferring gained knowledge to their own world
The same is true in this research as reading short stories can arouse our students’ interest in learning English in general, and develop better their critical thinking in particular especially when the students’ major is about literature Moreover, their reading proficiency and their critical abilities are the most important points that the study wants to reach
From the views above, it is assumed that short stories can make an important contribution to the students' improvement in reading They can be used to develop students' reading comprehension Therefore, concepts of a short story need to be discussed in the following part of this study
2.2.4 Short Stories used as Reading Material
According to Simanjuntak (1988, p 9), the EFL students may be fluent readers in their native language, but they often cannot transfer those skills to reading English When they read English, they tend to focus on the word rather than on the entire text, and they are tied to their dictionaries, so they read slowly and word by word and have unreasonable expectations about how much they should be able to understand
Students will finally give up continuing their reading when they face this difficulty every time they read The situation will be different if students are given interesting materials which can encourage them to read on Eskey (1988, p 12) says that once reading material appropriate to the level and interests of a particular student has been identified, the more the material that students reads, the better and the faster his reading skill will develop
Similarly, Nuttall (1996, pp 170-177) suggests three major criteria that the instructors must be concerned about when choosing texts: "suitability of content,
a3
Trang 34exploitability, readability" In the light of the ideas, "suitability of content" is one of the most essential factors which can make students interested in reading The text attraction will help them read more effectively "Exploitability" is the criterion, according to Nuttall, which helps facilitate learning Students can develop their reading competence through exploring a text The third criterion, "Readability" is the combination of structural and lexical difficulty Therefore, assessing the right level of the students to provide appropriate texts is very vital to teachers The texts should contain the vocabularies and grammatical rules suitable for the themes and topics to be considered on the basic of students’ interest and stages of development If the texts are too far beyond students’ level, they will make them frustrated to understand and become unmotivated to learn
In fact, the above mentioned criteria, on which instructors can base when choosing the material, play a crucial part However, there are still several criteria being not less important, which researchers recommend us to take into consideration as follows:
First, "variety of texts" is the criterion that should be taken into account In Nuttall’ s
(1996) view, variety of texts makes reading class more interesting and as a result it helps activate students to get involved more in reading activities
Another criterion is "authenticity" Nunan (1999) states materials should be authentic in terms of text and task The selection of authentic reading texts becomes very important to develop the students’ language proficiency
Trang 35Somewhat similarly, Callahan and Clark (1987, p 33) suggest that some functions should be made by any visual materials used for reading activities They are to promote students’ desire for reading and to make them feel what they are reading and the way they are reading is related to the way in which the written text is used in real life Next, they are to provide a clue to the meaning of the details, either introducing students to the meaning for the first time and remind them of it More importantly, they expose learners to a symbolic analysis of the relation between written language and spoken sound
It is obviously presented that almost all of the mentioned authors have view points in common for choosing reading texts However, Wallace, Callahan and Clark do not refer variety criterion Indeed, variety plays an important role in resulting in motivation in reading classes Therefore, Hedge (2000) firmly claims, "Variety: of topic, of length of text, of rhetorical organization, and of reading purpose" is one of the key criteria that needs to be considered in selecting texts for learners
Being English teachers, we all make a great attempt to manage the teaching and learning activities in the classroom effectively and efficiently So, we have to provide the students with materials in order to help them reach the objectives of learning determined before Concerning with the above mentioned criteria of text selection, teachers can be flexible in choosing texts for a reading course According to Tomlinson (1998), materials refer to anything, which is used by teachers or students to facilitate learning of a language They could be cassettes, videos, CD ROM, readers, textbooks, workbooks, or photocopied exercises As for the development of reading skills, of course the teacher can provide the students with
learning materials, a textbook or literary works
In the light of the ideas above, the researcher is determined to insert some selected short stories in English non-majored syllabus in the hope that learning reading through short stories will help students improve their reading comprehension Short stories can be regarded as an alternative of interesting materials that can be used ina
Trang 36reading class, and can be used to contribute to the functions and to meet the criteria listed above
The following part is the key point of this chapter that centers around the previous studies related partly to the research problem They show what other researchers have done and what other sides of the same field they have not yet done, being the basic literature review for this research and probably other ones to go on studying 2.3 Related research studies
Many researchers have studied the effectiveness of using literature in a language classroom, especially short stories on improving reading skill
Alden et al (2003) used “literature to increase reading motivation” by helping his fourth grade learners to develop a broader awareness of literacy genres, through participation in literature-based discussion activities The result was that such activities used in the classroom could encourage their reading interest However, the subjects in their research are elementary learners and English is their native language
Also, Numahunt et al (2004) conducted a research “Using Children’s Literature to Improve Reading Skill”: A case study of secondary students at Hor-Wang School This study investigated the ability of secondary students in reading literature in terms of vocabulary and comprehension, and explored teaching materials with the use of literature Based on the Pre-test and Post-test results, the study revealed that the students’ vocabulary and reading comprehension was improved and suggested that a variety of literature be used to promote students’ active reading Like Alden et al.(2003) , Numahunt et al (2004) also used literature in improving high school students’ reading ability though the subjects in this research are superior in age and their major is Science-Math, which is a natural science subject
Trang 37SMP Negeri Jepara The findings suggested that short stories should be used by the teachers to improve students’ ability in reading comprehension The results of the study indicated the improvement of the learners’ reading comprehension via Pre- test and Post-test result comparison Nevertheless, which level of reading comprehension was improved, according to Herber (1986), literal, interpretative or applied comprehension level was not shown in the study
In addition, as for tertiary education area in Vietnam, Mr Pham Le Sung Chinh carried
out a research entitled “Bridging the Gap between EFL Language Study and Literature Study (2000): Designing a Reading Course for USSH English Majors by Using Twentieth Century American Short Stories.” He used short stories as reading texts to consolidate and improve four integrated skills with a focus on Reading comprehension and to develop learners’ personal response Simultaneously, he introduced some narrative techniques for learners’ preliminary interpretation and criticism As a result, the special reading course is tailored with the content of the stories compatible with the Vietnamese context Yet, the subjects of the study are in-service junior students of the
Department of Linguistics and Literature of Ho Chi Minh City University of Social
Sciences and Humanities In this research, the participants’ reading comprehension could be improved but not a particular level of comprehension was mentioned in 5.1: The Results of the study Though his result showed the improvement in their Reading skill being the foundation to the initial contribution to the teaching of American literature, the statistical analysis (except the Questionnaire Results in 3.2) was not presented to increase the reliability of the study
Following Pham Le Sung Chinh’s (2000) study, another MA thesis entitled “Incorporating Literature in Language Classroom to Improve Basic Language Skills” was conducted by Ms Nguyen Hong Diem Trang The researcher designed an English literature course for English majors of Ben Tre College, included five short stories being taught in 30 periods (45 minutes for each period) She also recommended an approach to design an English literature course at her school and
Trang 38the combination of different approaches in teaching one of the stories in her designed course through the Detailed Lesson Plan (Chapter Four) This research has a very little relation to our research but it can be the review of methods used to teach short stories mentioned in Chapter four With the subjects being the English majors, she suggested the application of “Translation activities” in Activity 3, Post- Reading (2005:114), which is unnecessary for English majors This is the case that we care for in our teaching short stories to English non-majored students of Philology Faculty at BDU
From the research results above, it can be summarized that teaching students reading skill by using short stories is quite beneficial which should be investigated further to find out the best way to help our learners of all levels and various types develop their reading skill as well as enhance their reading comprehension In this study, we are going to do a research in the same skill: reading, but with the different subjects Just as those researchers used literature, specifically short stories, to improve their students’ reading skill or design an English course than I am studying how to redesign the EGP course for the Philological students of BDU by inserting some well selected short stories, also aiming at developing their reading skill, at both literal and applied levels
2.4 Summary
Trang 39Gilang Styani, Numahunt et al, Pham Le Sung Chinh, and Nguyen Hong Diem
Trang were also mentioned in section 2.3 which provided a global look for using
literary texts in teaching and learning reading The next chapter will discuss in detail the subjects and the procedural steps of the research
<3
Trang 40Chapter Three: METHODOLOGY
The purpose of the study is to investigate the effects of using short stories on improving Reading comprehension at both literal and applied levels of the freshmen of Philology Faculty at BDU The instruments utilized in the research were (1) an English reading comprehension test for both Pretest and Posttest and (2) a questionnaire (See Appendix A & C)
It was expected that the findings would reveal the positive effects of using short stories in teaching English reading to the Philology Faculty students at BDU, which could create their good attitudes towards learning English in general and develop their critical thinking to reading texts in particular
This chapter presents the research methods used in the study, including (1) research participants, (2) research approach, (3) research procedure, (4) research instruments, (5) the construction and development of the research and (6) data analysis
3.1 Research Participants
The participants in the study were 110 first-year students at BDU majoring in Philology Students were classified as either high gaining scores or low gaining scores based on a median split on their total English scores on the pre-test Equal numbers of high gaining and low gaining students were then randomly chosen for the experimental group and the control group Each group consists of 55 students All of the first-year students are required to take about 10 hours of General English per week (level 2 = Pre-Intermediate level), in the second semester of the school- year 2009-2010 The students’ ages were ranged from 19-21 years old These two groups are the two samples which represent the two group subjects from which we could observe the influence of reading short stories on their reading comprehension Two groups were not significantly different in terms of reading ability This was tested by Independent samples t-test as presented in Chapter Four